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megjclarke

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About megjclarke

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  1. A follow-up for you... I called the high school, and the football coach will be training my son for next season, starting today. He runs the weight room after school and trains about 30 high school kids and a few eighth graders. I was amazed that the high school football coach would train an eighth grader, and very impressed that he was so enthusiastic to get my son into playing shape. My son is very excited to have this opportunity. Only a select few eighth graders get to train at the high school, and my son is proud (and a little nervous) to get this special instruction. Plus, he's looking forward to building a relationship with next year's coach ahead of time. Come next year, the coach will already know what my son is made of. Thanks so much for your advice! I never would have thought to call the high school if you hadn't suggested it. You have made a huge difference in a young man's life!
  2. Thanks for the advice. I never even thought of consulting with the HS coach. I will definitely do it!
  3. My son played his first year of football this past year, and he ended up getting injured (see my post MCL Tear in 13-Year-Old). It actually turned out that he did NOT have a tear: he had a dislocated kneecap, bruised bone, and ligament strains but no tears. He will be prone to kneecap dislocation because the groove in his leg bone is abnormally shallow. He's gone through physical therapy, no surgery thank god, and his orthopedist has given him to go-ahead to resume normal activity. He is excited about being on the Freshman team when he enters high school next year, and he wants to really prove himself. His injury happened right before the championship game, and he was on crutches and unable to play. His teammates gave him some crap about that, and he basically wants to come back stronger, faster, bigger, and better than before to impress his teammates and prove himself to his new coaches. He has asked me to help him put together a training regimen. His goals are to get stronger and gain speed and power for next season. Practice for next season doesn't start until August, so he's got a good amount of time and he can definitely make a lot of progress. He is very serious and dedicated. He already pumps iron 3 days a week, but he needs some direction to meet his goals. Can anyone recommend some exercises and/or a training regimen for a 13-year-old defensive back? I could also use some advice on what he should eat to help him bulk up. Thanks so much for your help!
  4. My 13-year-old son injured his knee at football practice a few days ago. We took him to the emergency room, where the doctor diagnosed him with a severed MCL (a ligament on the inside of the knee). We are waiting to get an MRI, but it is fairly clear that he will have to have surgery to reconnect the ligament. Bad timing on this injury as his team will be playing for the league championship this Sunday. He is not happy about this! He's improved so much this year, and was looking forward to playing the championship. My son is already thinking about joining the freshman team next year. He says he loves the game and wants to play again, but it worried about reinjury. Does anyone have experience in this type of injury? What is the recovery rate? Will he be able to play again? Is there a high risk of reinjury? Any input would be helpful. Thanks!
  5. OK, here's the update! The team has made it all the way to the league championship, which is next Sunday the 19th. My son has made huge strides, and is getting played more. The turning point was when we had out of town visitors coming to see games. On the advice of slogar1 on this board, I told the coaches we had family coming in and asked if they could try to play him a little extra. Boy, did they! He went out on at least 30 plays in those games! I could have run out on the field and kissed the coaches, but I managed to hold back. Thanks for the advice, Slogar! You were right on target. Somewhere in there, my son lost his fear of hitting. He started taking people down without hesitation. He still plays cornerback, and they've started putting him on the kickoff team as well because of his speed and power, and he's made some great tackles. In practice, he's even taken down our star player, who can often be seen in games dragging five players behind him to get that first down. The telling sign of his improvement was this: the next game after our out of town guests came was a playoff game. My son said that he's a rookie and he won't get much play in the post-season, and I agreed. However, his coaches put him in for 10 plays, rather than the 6-play minimum. They even sent him in as cornerback when the other team was in the endzone. In the past, they would have pulled him out as soon as they got to the 30 yard line. Interestingly, in yesterday's playoff game, the second they pulled him out, the other team made a pass to his side, which the receiver caught for a touchdown. It happened not once, but twice in the game: once was a pass, once was a running play. This is a repeated pattern I have noticed. When my son is in as cornerback, he keeps his receiver contained and nothing at all happens on his side of the field. The coaches pull him out, and 9 times out of 10, the very next play is a pass to the receiver he was covering or a run to his side, and it often results in a touchdown. My son says it's just a coincidence, but I'm wondering if it could mean that the other coaches have marked him as a strong player. Any thoughts? While it's great to see him getting played and making tackles, the best news is that he wants to play next year. He told me football has built his confidence, made him stronger, and given him new friends. He's worked hard, and he wants to keep building on his hard work. I will post again after the championship game next Sunday to let you know how it went. Thanks so much for your help, guys! You've helped turn this season around for my son.
  6. If by "stacked" team, you mean that they already have their starters, then yes, he is on a stacked team. His league consists of A, AA, and AAA divisions, with A being the youngest/lightest and AAA being the oldest/heaviest. He's in AAA, and several of the team members started out in A and have moved up through the years. These players have played for many years, are very skilled, and are in play for basically the whole game, often playing offense AND defense. If I were the coach, I'd play them too! They are very good players. Next year he will be on the high school freshman team, and I suspect that will be a whole different story. There will likely be many people who have never played before, and I think that will make him more on par with this years' starters. He says he's not going to play next year, but I suspect he will, especially if he's able to get in a few good plays on the field this year. He went to football camp this summer and I plan on sending him again next summer. I know EXACTLY what his problem is: he has yet to get over the fear of hitting. I told him to go full force at EVERY practice. He really wants to impress his coaches, and he knows he doesn't have much time left to do it, so he will take full advantage of every opportunity. Whatever the coaches tell him, he will do tenfold. Hopefully this will get their attention, but it's all up to my son at this point. He will get what he gives.
  7. Thanks so much for your input. This all makes sense, and I understand much more about the coach's perspective now that you have all put in your two cents. I cheer for everyone, so I definitely feel included in the games. Sometimes I even cheer for the other team! I probably shouldn't do that, but I get so swept up in the game, and I get excited when ANYONE makes a good play. I always leave the games with a sore throat! You guys have given me a reality check, and I really appreciate it! I will post again in a few weeks and let you know what has happened as the season progresses. Thanks again, guys!
  8. No, no, you haven't made me mad at all. In fact, you are 100% right!! It doesn't appear to bother my son at all, it just bothers me. I'm not embarrased, just concerned for my son's confidence. I suspect I'm being a typical worrying mother, wanting to protect my baby. Silly, considering that he seems just fine. He tends to get down on himself, and I don't want the end result of football to be that he actually feels WORSE about himself ("I gave it my best and it wasn't good enough", "I just can't do anything right", etc) Believe me, I won't get upset if he gets pulled next year to let the new guys get a chance. I'll just be happy if he wants to play again next year. It's helpful knowing that most first-year players just don't get played, period. I'll keep that in mind, and maybe it will help me to not be such a fierce mama bear.
  9. Thanks, coachingdad. Your comment seems right on target, and right in line with my son's attitude. After the game, he commented that he would have to work harder if he wants to get on the field. A side note: he decided not to go to the "optional" extra DB practice the Friday before the game and later kicked himself for not attending. He thought he would probably have gotten more play if he'd been there. Do you agree? I feel kind of badly for him because he's working so hard and not necessarily getting to play. He's keeping a positive attitude, and it's good practice for later in life. After all, we can't always get what we want. We work hard and then sometimes we are rewarded. Delayed gratification is a good thing...all of us have to deal with it as adults, so we may as well learn when we're younger. My concern is that he will end up getting discouraged and won't play next year, although it sounds like he would actually get on the field next year since he will be more experienced. Also, we've got some out-of-town family coming up to see the game on Oct 22, and I know he will be disappointed if they come and he doesn't get played. Any advice as to what he can do to up his chances? What do coaches look for in a cornerback - or any player - to signal that he is ready to go out on the field? Even though we usually win, I come away from the games feeling kind of bad, because my son hasn't contributed to the win. It's almost like he's not part of the team. Any advice for a mom in this situation? How can I keep this in perspective and stay positive? I do NOT want to discuss this with the coaches since I don't want to tell them how to do their job. They know what they're doing and I don't want to imply otherwise.
  10. My son is a first-year player on a AAA league team. He had some problems starting out - he is the subject of the thread Should I Let My 13-Year-Old Son Quit Football? - but has completely changed his attitude and has really been working hard to earn his coach's respect, even doing extra work outside of practice. His coaches have noticed his extra effort and actually complimented him at last Thursday's practice, telling my husband that our son "amazed him, totally blew him away". He was really hitting hard and has been going above and beyond to try to impress his coaches. Like most coaches, these guys do NOT give out compliments easily. You REALLY have to earn it, which is great because if you do get a compliment, you know they really mean it. Obviously, we were all feeling great going into this Sunday's game. We all thought that the coach's compliment meant that our son would get more time on the field this game. Before the game, the coach told him to go out and play just like he did on Thursday. My son was amped and ready to go, but they only put him on on the minimum number of plays. Four out of the six plays were on kick-offs, which is something new they've been doing with him. On the other two plays, he went in on his regular position of cornerback, but the coaches put him in when there were literally less than 2 seconds left on the clock on both plays. Needless to say, my son couldn't accomplish anything in 1.6 seconds. The cornerback who was in for the rest of the game gave up the only two touchdowns the other team scored, so maybe our son will get a better chance next week. My son has a good attitude about the lack of playing time. He says that he'll just have to work harder to earn his coaches respect. I admire his attitude, and told him so. But on the inside, I'm wondering what's going on here. Why would his coach compliment him at practice and then not give him a chance in the game? I have to say that I'm confused about this. It seems like if a player amazed you, you would give them some playing time. I'm beginning to wonder if the compliment was given sincerely, but I don't know why they could give insincere praise. The coach was also telling my husband that he's been telling the line coaches to give more players time on the field, rather than just sticking to their core group of superstars. I'm sure there is a certain amount of "paying your dues" as a first-year player, and I can accept that. It just kills me to see my son give it 150% at every practice and still not see any action. His attitude is great, and he is impressing me on many levels. What can I say, I just want to see him out there on the field, and it's not happening. He really wants to prove himself in a game as well as in practice, but he's just not getting the chance. Every week, he says that he will just have to work harder to earn his coaches respect. While this shows a lot of maturity, internally I ask myself when that respect will be given. How much does he have to give for them to give him a chance? I've not shared any of my negative feelings with my son because I don't want to affect his incredibly great attitude. I'm just looking for a coach's perspective on this whole thing. What do you look for in a player, especially a first-year player, that makes you play them? Also, any advice for me as a parent on how to deal better with watching him sit on the bench the whole game? Thanks, everyone. You have been of so much help to me before, and I know you will be again!
  11. Thanks for the link to your site. You've got some really great training programs, what a resource! I've printed up the youth football training document, and I'll share the info with my son. Interestingly, it seems somewhat similar to the training routine I put together for my son, so I must be on the right track. Thanks again!
  12. Here's a post-game update for you all... My son had his first game on Sunday, and it went well. We won!! Yay!! His coaches put him out as Cornerback pretty much right away, and he held his own. He didn't make any tackles, but he was able to slow a few guys down, and those guys were then immediately tackled by his teammates. The team's defense was great! The other team barely got the ball to move! Our team had possession of the ball for amost the whole second half, so James didn't get a chance to go in again since the defense was only up for a few minutes at most. After the game, he was filling his grandpa in on the game, and I heard him say he didn't do badly, but he didn't do great either. That was a pretty accurate assessment, and I was glad to hear him being realistic instead of getting down on himself. Obviously, he's decided not to quit. He's even been doing extra training on his own time to build up his speed, endurance, strength, power, etc. He actually came to me and told me that he wanted to work on this stuff, and I am very proud of him. It's a sure sign of growing maturity that he 1) took a good hard look at himself and assessed the areas he needs to work on and 2) he has the internal motivation to go above and beyond and work on his goals even OUTSIDE of practice. He's also come to the wise conclusion to put in 110% at every practice. After all, this is where he can learn the most if it puts in the effort. There's no safer place to mess up than at practice, and he really has a chance to improve. I told him to give it his all, and when he feels like he's got nothing left, dig down deep and find it. He will impress himself with what he can do if he tries. I'm seeing the old James slowly disappear. Gone are the days of complaining. Instead, he gets out there and works hard to get what he wants. AMAZING!!! Thanks again for all your insight and help, everyone! I can't tell you what a difference it has made.
  13. You have all given me such amazing advice, and I truly believe that it has turned my son around. Before I logged onto this board, I really didn't know what I was talking about when it came to football. Now I can give my son reliable advice from an experienced perspective, and it has been a godsend. At the beginning of this week, my son was ready to throw in the towel. I shared all of your wisdom with him regarding the pain, the nature of his position, bouncing back from failure, and pushing through a challenge. After this weeks' practices, he's decided to stick it out. He's actually started having fun playing the game, which is GREAT! That was why he wanted to do this. I let his coaches what had been happening, and they have been great, encouraging him to stick it out and have fun. They tell me he's been improving a lot and that a lot of beginners go through this kind of stuff. A side note regarding pain: the DB coach noticed that his pads were too loose, so they weren't protecting from impact. He's kept them nice and tight now, and I haven't heard ANY complaints about pain. To answer some of your questions: his teammates haven't given him any flack when he messes up, and neither do the coaches. When someone messes up, the coaches pull them out of the scrimmage and tell them what went wrong and how to correct it next time. I am really blown away by the coaches. They are incredible, likable guys, the perfect mix of friendly and tough. He expects a lot from himself and gets very frustrated when he doesn't achieve like he wants to. You are all right: he expected to step onto the field and be an MVP because of his love for the game and obsession with Madden games. He has seen now that it will take hard work, and he seems to be ready for the challenge. Regarding academics, football has actually proven to be a motivator for him to do well in school. He told me last year that he wanted to go to USC (I think that's the right school), since the NFL recruits from that school. I looked into the tuition, and it's outrageous, of course, so I told him he'd have to get as many scholarships as possible. Ever since then, he has logged onto the PowerSchools website EVERY DAY to check his grades, and he's taken the initiative to make up missing work and even ask his teachers for extra credit assignments when necessary. I truly believe that football will benefit my son in so many ways: self-discipline, coping with failure, developing mental and physical strength, and character growth in general. Thanks again for all your advice! His first game is Sunday the 10th. I will log back on and let you all know how it went!!
  14. You are confirming what I already thought. He should finish it out. It will be good for him. Yes, he started late. Until last year, he only wanted to watch the game. Last year he decided he wanted to play, but he didnt' tell me until it was too late to get him in. I will tell that you said he should be caught up by the end of the season. This will be encouraging. And just think how proud of himself he will be that he pushed through and accomplished something difficult! Thanks so much for your response. I'm much more confident in my stance now that some experienced football guys have backed me up.
  15. Wow, your reply has been very helpful. I don't know much about football myself, so your insight is quite valuable to me. My son has a lot of respect for his fellow footballers and coaches, and I know he will take your words to heart. I will definitely tell him that the pain is common for new players, and it will diminish as his technique improves. You are right, my son is sensitive to failure. He always has been. In my mind, one of the major benefits of playing football is that he will learn to deal better with failure. Messing up once isn't the end of the world. You learn what you can from the experience and move on. I will pass along your wisdom, especially "Each play is a new season. Past failures and successes are of no consequence in the present." This is good advice in general, and applies to much more than football. My instinct is that he needs to stick it out. I don't want to teach him that quitting is an acceptable response to challenges. What is your opinion? You must have had players quit before. As a coach, you may not necessarily have much control over that. However, there must be some instances in which you can tell that a player isnt' cut out for the game. How do you know whether to encourage someone to stay in the game or to let them go? Is there any point at which it becomes pointless for a player to continue? Out of curiosity, how long have you been playing/coaching?
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